Requiem (Berlioz)
The Requiem (Op. 5, Grande Messe des morts) by Hector Berlioz (1803 - 1869) was composed in 1837. The Grande Messe des Morts is one of Berlioz's best-known works, known for its tremendous orchestration of woodwind and brass instruments, including four antiphonal brass ensembles to be placed at the corners of the concert stage. The work lasts approximately ninety minutes and derives its text from the traditional Latin Requiem Mass.
Background and premiere
Adrien de Gasparin, the Minister of the Interior of France, asked Berlioz, in 1837, to compose a Requiem Mass to memorialize soldiers in the Revolution of July 1830. Berlioz gladly accepted the request, having already wanted to compose a large orchestral work. The orchestra was growing in size and quality, and the use of woodwinds and brass was expanding due to the increasing ease of intonation afforded by modern instruments.
Berlioz dedicated his Requiem to Gasparin. Berlioz once wrote "If I were threatened with the destruction of the whole of my works save one, I should crave mercy for the Messe des morts.".[1]
The premiere was conducted by François-Antoine Habeneck in 1837. According to Berlioz himself, Habeneck decided to put down his baton during the Tuba mirum (part of the Dies irae movement), although he was supposed to guide the orchestra through a critical part. Berlioz rushed to the podium to conduct himself, saving the performance from disaster. The premiere was a complete success. [2]
Structure
Orchestration
The Requiem is scored for
- 20 woodwinds: 4 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 English horns, 4 clarinets, 8 bassoons
- 12 horns
- 4 cornets and 4 tubas (in the orchestra)
- 4 brass choirs
- a huge battery of percussionists
- 16 timpani played by 10 timpanists
- 2 bass drums
- 4 tam-tams
- 10 pairs of cymbals
- more than a hundred strings
- 25 First violins
- 25 Second violins
- 20 violas
- 20 violoncellos
- 18 double basses
In relation to the number of singers and strings, Berlioz writes in the score that "these numbers are only relative and if possible, should the location permit it, double or triple all the voice parts, and augment the instrumental count as well in the same proportion."
The work premiered with over four hundred performers.
List of movements
There are ten movements to this Requiem, listed below:
- Introit and Kyrie
- Sequence: Dies irae
- Sequence: Quid sum miser
- Sequence: Rex tremendae
- Sequence: Quaerens me
- Sequence: Lacrimosa
- Offertory: Domine Jesu Christe
- Offertory: Hostias
- Sanctus
- Agnus Dei and Communion
Interestingly, the total number of bars of the first five movements is 603, which is also the number of bars of the last four. The first and last movements both have a 3/4 time signature. The sixth movement, Lacrimosa, is in 9/8 time signature, and has 201 measures, a third of 603. The proportioned properties, intended or not, provide a state of equilibrium and stability.
Description of the movements
The Requiem opens gravely with rising scales in the strings, horns, oboes, and cor anglais preceding the choral entry. Later, the music becomes extremely agitated with despair. The first movement contains the first two sections of the music for the Mass (the Introit and the Kyrie).
The Sequence commences in the second movement, with the Dies irae portraying Judgement Day. The four brass ensembles at the corners of the stage first appear in this movement, one by one; they are joined by sixteen timpani, two bass drums, and four tam-tams. The loud flourish is followed by the choral entry. There is a powerful unison statement by the basses, followed by the choir. Woodwinds and strings end the movement.
The third movement, Quid sum miser, is short, depicting after Judgement Day. It features an interesting orchestration of TTB chorus, two cor anglais, eight bassoons, cellos, and double basses. The Rex tremendae contains contrasting opposites. The choir sings both beseechingly, as if for help, and majestically. Quaerens me is a quiet, soft movement which is completely a cappella.
The sixth movement, Lacrimosa, is in 9/8 time signature, and is considered the center of the entire Requiem. It is the only movement written in recognizable sonata form and the last movement depicting pain. The dramatic effect of this movement is heightened by the addition of the massed brass and percussion. This movement concludes the Sequence section of the Mass.
The seventh movement begins the Offertory. Domine Jesu Christe is based on a repeated three-note motif: A, B flat, and A. The choral statements of this motive interweave with the orchestral melodies. The "A, B flat, A" motif persists for about ten minutes almost to the end, which concludes peacefully. Robert Schumann was very interested in the innovativeness of this movement. The concluding part of the Offertory, the Hostias, is short and scored for the male voices, eight trombones, three flutes, and strings.
A solo male tenor voice is featured in the ninth movement, the Sanctus. There are long held notes played by the flute. Women's voices also sing, perhaps answering the tenor. Later, the low strings and cymbals join in. A full orchestral fugue ends the movement. In his original version, Berlioz requested ten tenors for the solo part. The final movement, containing the Agnus Dei and Communion sections of the Mass, features long held chords by the woodwinds and strings. The movement recapitulates melodies and effects from previous movements.
Notes
Reference
- Steinberg, Michael. "Hector Berlioz: Requiem." Choral Masterworks: A Listener's Guide. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005, 61-67.